It was announced on Sunday night that Chad Mendes would receive a rematch against Jose Aldo for the featherweight title at UFC 176. The announcement didn’t come as much of a surprise. Mendes has won five fights in a row in dominant fashion proving that he’s more than ready to challenge for the title again. What surprised me was the reception that the announcement received.
Many people weren’t exactly thrilled with the match-up. They brushed it off as another decisive victory for Aldo already. Now it’s completely understandable for fans to be disappointed that Aldo didn’t get the super fight against Anthony Pettis. Any time a rumored match-up between two fighters that have endless highlight tribute videos dedicated to them doesn’t materialize. People are let down and won’t accept anything less.
That being said, skeptics are making a significant mistake in labeling Chad Mendes, as just another victim. When you are talking about top-level fighters in the featherweight division, the list starts with Mendes. What tends to be forgotten is that he’s only lost one fight in his career, which was against Aldo. His career has been essentially dominating his opponents with his wrestling or knocking them senseless.
The power that he possesses as a featherweight is frightening. His right hand comes at such a blistering pace that has caught several of his past opponents. Whether it’s an overhand right that knocked out Yaotzin Meza or a right hook that staggered Clay Guida, it has become one of his main assets. We’ve seen him use it on numerous occasions during his winning streak.
He’s always had tremendous power from his wrestling background. That has now translated to his striking, where it has become more fluid by training under Duane Ludwig. Now he’s being more elusive and has become more versatile as a fighter. He’s setting up combinations to batter his opponents. That’s what led him to demoralizing Darren Elkins with a straight right followed by a looping right hook.
The term “speed kills” couldn’t be more evident in Mendes’ arsenal. He’s devoured his opponents by speed, power, and timing. Besides having non-stop cardio, Guida’s reputation is always being extremely durable. After recklessly charging in, Mendes caught him with a counter right hand that dropped him before eventually finishing him. For him to stop Guida, who had never been stopped before proved how lethal his striking has become.
There is nothing flashy about his style; it’s simply based from utilizing fundamentals and timing. That was always one of Ludwig’s specialties as a fighter. He’s now implemented his knowledge to the camp, which is why they’re striking has improved so dramatically. T.J Dillashaw’s improvements as a striker have stood out the most from the camp’s emergence.
Some also argued that Cub Swanson was more deserving of a title shot, which is a justifiable argument. Swanson has been on a tremendous winning streak. In the end, Mendes was rewarded for staying active and having a more compelling first fight against Aldo. He wasn’t knocked out in seven seconds by a flying knee like Swanson did. His fight consisted of him practically winning the first round by smothering Aldo and even taking him down on a few occasions.
Eventually that led to the infamous fence pull to avoid being taken down. Then in super human fashion, Aldo spins around and lands an improbable knee to finish the fight in dramatic fashion. Despite the astonishing ending, the fight left you wanting more. Aldo grabbing the face is one of the most notable fence grabs in UFC history. Who knows what would have occurred if he wasn’t able to grab the fence.
The fight was over two years ago and Mendes has clearly shown drastic improvements. He admitted on the MMA Hour that he wasn’t ready for their first fight. His style mostly consisted of wrestling and controlling his opponents. Now he’s shown that he’s evolved into one of the top strikers in the division. What also stands out about his development is that he still knows how to utilize his wrestling when needed.
We’ve seen wrestlers in the past fall in love with their striking and it ends up driving them away from what they specialize in. Josh Koscheck has become an example of that in past fights, where he wants to end the fight as quickly as possible. Ryan Bader tends to do that as well. Mendes hasn’t gone away from his wrestling and still uses it when necessary. His performance against Nik Lentz was a distinction of that.
Lentz is one of the best wrestlers in the division, yet had every take down attempt stuffed and was taken down repeatedly. Mendes had also been dealing with a sinus infection that hindered him from being active on the ground. He still managed to control the entire fight, which showed how talented he is.
The featherweight division has greatly evolved since 2012. We’ve seen more compelling fights and contenders to get excited about in a potential fight against Aldo. While many people believe that he has cleaned out the division, there are still a few compelling fights left for Aldo.
Once again, we’ll see if Team Alpha Male can rise to the occasion and finally win a title. I’m also intrigued to see how Mendes manages to close the distance. As good as his wrestling is, Aldo’s takedown defense has improved and his reflexes have always been extraordinary.
Another challenge for him that involves closing the distance will be his lack of reach. His stocky frame leads him into having to charge in more, which doesn’t bode well against a crafty striker like Aldo. He’ll have to figure out ways to frustrate Aldo, besides constantly shooting in on him. Eventually you’ll tire out, we’ve seen it countless times how fighters tire themselves out by shooting in constantly. Demian Maia was the latest example of that against Rory MacDonald.
While the fight may be in August, this is one of the main title fights that I’m really looking forward to in 2014. People have criticized Aldo for coasting in his past few fights. Mendes will bring the best out of him, where the fight will be at a more frantic pace contrasting from Aldo’s recent title defenses. As appetizing as the dream fight with Pettis may be, Mendes is a suitable opponent that can challenge Aldo like no other featherweight has done before.
Twitter: @Allen_Strk
